Abstract
This article develops a comprehensive conceptual framework for understanding and comparing social enterprises across different institutional and cultural contexts. Moving beyond national definitions and legal forms, the proposed framework identifies the essential characteristics that distinguish social enterprises from both conventional businesses and traditional non-profit organisations, enabling systematic cross-national comparative research.
Key Findings
The analysis reveals that effective comparative research on social enterprises requires attention to multiple dimensions:
- Social enterprises combine economic activity with explicit social objectives, but the balance between these dimensions varies significantly across contexts
- Governance structures — particularly stakeholder participation — are a more reliable indicator of social enterprise identity than legal form
- The relationship between social enterprises and the state differs fundamentally across welfare regime types
- Market revenue dependence creates different organisational dynamics than grant or subsidy dependence
- The EMES approach, identifying nine indicators across economic, social, and governance dimensions, provides the most robust basis for cross-national comparison
Conceptual Framework
The proposed framework organises social enterprise characteristics along three dimensions:
- Economic dimension: continuous productive activity, significant economic risk, minimum paid work
- Social dimension: explicit social aim, initiative by a group of citizens, limited profit distribution
- Governance dimension: high degree of autonomy, democratic decision-making, participatory character
Implications
The framework has practical applications for researchers, policymakers, and practitioners seeking to understand the diverse landscape of social enterprise across Europe and beyond. It provides a common analytical language that can accommodate national specificities while maintaining comparative rigour. The article connects to ongoing work on social enterprises in specific national contexts and broader discussions about the role of social enterprise in contemporary economies.
